Business owners: ‘This dump site is ruining our businesses’

BUSINESS owners in Dr Gordon Street in Greytown are furious over the state of waste skips in a nearby dumping site that are now overflowing.

Residents said the trash inside the dump site has not been collected for a month. They are also concerned about the pungent smell permeating from the dumping site. Other business owners near the site claim that some of the materials dumped at the landfill site contain toxic substances

When the Gazette arrived at the site, the pungent smell of rotten domestic products permeated the entire industrial area — inconveniencing residents and business owners nearby.

Kevin Diedrick, the owner of a panel beating company Kevin Diedrick Restorations, told the Gazette that he is considering closing his company and starting the business in Durban.

“I am unable to develop my business due to the terrible stink coming from the dump site. It’s become worse last month. Flies from the dump site come into our office. We can’t even talk to our customers.

“I can’t develop this property, and I am now considering leaving Greytown and starting my business in Ballito because nobody has done anything to sort out this mess.

“I am disappointed. The biggest mistake I made was to buy this property [next to the dump site]. There’s no way I can develop my business in this place because I’ve already lost many customers due to the terrible stench coming from the dump site,”he said.

Diedrick added that his company had started downsizing, having gone from 20 employees to five workers.

Another business owner whose business is situated near the dumping site said he has also lost many customers due to the strong smell coming from the dump site.

A business owner who refused to be named told the Gazette that other businesses are considerating shutting down due to the issue.

“I can’t even eat my lunch because my office is constantly [swarming with] flies. The smell coming from the dumping site is unbearable. This has affected our businesses as our customers are disgusted.

“The site is a total mess. It is not maintained properly. Domestic waste is not collected and burnt.

This is a frustration because it affects our health.”

Skhumbuzo Dlamini from Umvoti Municipality Waste Management, Parks and Recreations said the department was aware of the situation at the dumping site in Dr Gordon Street.

“We had a break down [in our services], as a result we were unable to clear the site in the past couple of days.

“We hope everything will be cleared by Friday [this week].

“We clean the site every week,” Dlamini said, reiterating the fact that the dumping site along Dundee Road is reserved for garden and refuse waste only.

“All the domestic refuse is being dumped at a site along Dr Gordon Street, hence it is reserved for waste domestic items,” Dlamini added.

Health inspector in the uMzinyathi District Municipality Ntombifuthi Mbatha promised to visit the site and conduct an inspection.